Bill Edwards, 1929-2013

Bill Edwards, 1929-2013

Article excerpt

The former MGM international publicity director died at his home in Cape Town, South Africa, on Jul 31. He was 84.

Edwards' son Nicolas, said his death was quite sudden and added that he had been unwell for the past few months.

Born in Sutton-in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, England, on Apr 4 1929, George William Edwards began his film career in London in 1952 at the trade paper Kine Weekly after three years in the Royal Navy and two as a reporter for the Sheffield (England) Star.

He joined MGM in 1961 as a unit publicist and became the studio's European publicity director, working on such films as The V.I.P.s, The Yellow Rolls Royce and The Dirty Dozen.

He enjoyed a warm working relationship with Sophia Loren, with whom he collaborated on Operation Crossbow, Lady L and The Countess From Hong Kong.

In his recently published biography, Ava Gardner: The Secret Conversations, co- author Peter Evans described Edwards as someone who spent half a lifetime dealing with actresses. …